About Us

Our mission is to incubate, launch and assist entrepreneurs and their start-ups in the social enterprise and sustainability spheres.

What's in a Name? "Beausoleil"

James Watson, Founder and President, grew up on the shores of Georgian Bay, which is north of Toronto in Ontario, Canada. Across the bay from his hometown lies Beausoleil Island. As part of the Georgian Bay Islands National Park, the island features a particularly unique geological history.

Beausoleil Island straddles a geological boundary of sorts. The northern half of the island is characterized by exposed bedrock with very little topsoil and vegetation. This type of terrain is referred to as the Canadian Shield (or Precambrian Shield) and is a result of the continental glaciers that covered much of Canada during the last ice age. When the glaciers advanced, they would scrape away all the topsoil, sand and large rocks, and carry it with them. When the glaciers began to retreat, they left behind everything that they had accumulated. The southern half of the island is characterized by this glacier till - sandy and rocky soil that allows for more vegetation.

The Canadian Shield represents some of the oldest exposed rock on earth, ranging in age from 550 million to 2 billion years old. The glacier till, on the other hand, is much younger, originating from approximately 110,000 to 12,000 years ago. It's this contrast between old and new that Beausoleil Sustainability Solutions represents; the old ways of doing business that degrade the environment and negatively disrupt society, versus the new more sustainable forms of business that seek to regenerate and harmonize.

Founder & President

At the moment, the "we" in Beausoleil Sustainability Solutions is I, James Watson. I'm passionate about what I do and committed to making real and tangible impact with my work. I believe that business and the marketplace can be a vehicle for good.

I've been a study of the environment and an astute observer of society my entire life. When I was 17, I rode my bicycle halfway across Canada - from my hometown of Midland, Ontario to Lake Louise, Alberta. The experience gave me a sense of unwavering confidence that I could surmount any challenge put in front of me. It also gave me a unique perspective of this vast and diverse nation we call Canada. When you're travelling at the pace of a bicycle for more than 30 days straight, you begin to see things differently. The pristine forested landscapes north of Lake Superior become pot-marked with logging roads. The vast prairie provinces become way-points for east-west freight. The mountains, in all their glory, become massive infrastructure projects that one can hardly comprehend at the age of 17.

I attended the University of Waterloo and earned a Bachelor of Environmental Studies (B.E.S.). The program that I majored in - Environment and Resource Studies - was great because it not only taught me the environmental subject matter inside-and-out, it also emphasized the human side of the equation. What were the decisions that created the issue in the first place? How could our proposed solutions adversely affect other aspects of the issue? What are all the sides of a conflict and where do their priorities lie? Above all, it taught me to think critically and how to problem-solve in the context of complexity. I graduated in 2009.

I moved to Toronto after graduation to begin my professional career. I've held a variety of positions that have shaped and influenced my approach to work, including positions in public relations, business development and environmental stewardship. I set out to start my own business in 2011, first by launching SPRiNG Dialogues in that same year and then Green Meeting Ninjas in 2013. I have also volunteered extensively with the Central YMCA in downtown Toronto, launching the centre's first volunteer-led Green Team and serving on its Volunteer Leadership Council.

I identify myself as an entrepreneur with a purpose and intend to continue working in the sustainability and social enterprise spheres indefinitely. I'd like to leverage my entrepreneurial experience and the advice I've received from my own mentors to help other entrepreneurs reach their goals.